Affordable BS to MS Computer Science path

[subhuman]

You can join the coast guard. They will send you to IT A school for 28 weeks and pay off your debts.

[SpicyMe23]

I am not being sarcastic ... I need to learn how to swim first. I was homeschooled and it wasn't part of our curriculum lol.

I had no idea - that is awesome. I wish when I had considered joining the military before I got married and had a child.

[Mamasaphire]

I am not being sarcastic ... I need to learn how to swim first. I was homeschooled and it wasn't part of our curriculum lol.

I was homeschooled too... the good news is that you are probably a self-motivated learner, and can catch up quickly

The other thing is that most of us who are older than you (ie. middle-aged) wouldn't have learned any currently relevant IT stuff in school anyway. Plus it all changes so rapidly, that even if you had it as part of your high school curriculum, it would likely be out of date anyway

[subhuman]

I wish when I had considered joining the military before I got married and had a child.

That is probably a reason to consider it. Coast Guard is almost entirely CONUS, accompanied, and very safe. They will pay for your families housing, health care, and dental (wait till your kids need braces). They will pay off your school debts, train you in IT, pay for your college while your in, then the post 9/11 GI BILL pays for your college and housing when you get out. If you finish all of your college before you get out there are ways to transfer your GI Bill to pay for your children. Plus you could retire by 45 and get mailbox money and health care for the rest of your life, on top of whatever job you work when you get out. And yes they will teach you to swim.

Sorry that I sound like a crazed fanatic, but I went from being literally homeless, crashing on friends couches and landscaping for $8/hr to well making over $100K just from the experience and training I got in 5 years in the Navy. The only real regret I have in my life is deciding to get out after one and not finishing my twenty. I could be retiring in 2 years if I had stayed in.

[plaidwandering]

computer science is NOT information technology

a MS in CS is going to get you advanced software engineering and algorithm stuff, and if you got through one you'd be capable of a good bit more than stock sysadmin pay

most of the best sysadmins I know have no degree or an unrelated degree, and while I don't include myself in that category I am a sysadmin with no degree(at least until June)

most of the time, my resume bypasses the HR department, or gets handed to them for a background check after the IT department has already decided they want me

get your basic support certs, get a grunty IT job, but keep on working on higher certs. Master that job and volunteer for projects past your level. Yes that might mean helping your exchange guy babysit the monotonous transfer of some mail hoarders massive box to a new store so he can do something better, but it's experience and helps build connections.

I don't see it dying anytime soon either, too many companies have regulatory compliance issues with cloud stuff.

[AJ_Atlanta]

The only real regret I have in my life is deciding to get out after one and not finishing my twenty. I could be retiring in 2 years if I had stayed in.

+1 Million, if it's a fit for you don't get out. Plenty of opportunities open up after time

[SpicyMe23]

That is very interesting and I was completely aware. I might just do a little research!

[SpicyMe23]

Thank you for sharing your thoughts and story. Yes, the sysadmins I knew have degrees in everything but IT or CS and IMO are very successful at what they do. The underlying theme is that they are all self-learners. Or, at least that is what I have observed.

Really, that is all I want for now. To get my feet wet. And if I can get a grunty IT job with my BS in Biology and some certs than by all means that is what I would prefer to do! All I really want right now is to get enough fundamentals and certs under my belt that I can land an entry level IT job and work my way up. Besides, I would have a better idea at that point in life of what type of degree would be beneficial and not just a waste of time and money (if another degree would be needed at all).

Thank you!

[subhuman]

With a BS in anything and basic understanding of IT you should have no problem finding a system administration job. You may just need to start at the helpdesk like most of us did.

Edx.org and Udemy.com both have excellent IT courses for self study. Udemy currently has one of their "all courses are $10" sales going on and it looks like the Windows administration and Linux administration courses are highly rated. Windows is easier, but Linux is always in high demand.

[SpicyMe23]

Hi subhuman ~ thank you for the words of advice and encouragement! I will definitely checkout udemy!